The present invention relates to a photoelectric converting device, and more particularly to a photoelectric converting device applicable to a solar cell or the like.
In the past, solar energy, that is, light energy, which is eco-friendly and inexhaustible, has attracted much attention as means for solving environmental issues, such as global warming and air pollution, as well as challenges in the development of energies that serve as alternatives to fossil fuels, such as oil and the like.
While solar cells have long been researched as one method that effectively utilizes light energy, the photoelectric conversion efficiency rate thereof is still considered inadequate.
As a photoelectric converting device and photoelectric converting system having a high photoelectric conversion efficiency rate of light energy, there have been disclosed in JP 2001-303022 A and JP 2002-25635 A, for example, an energy transferable device and light energy—electrical energy converting system wherein an artificial electron transport pathway of photosynthesis is established by constructing a molecule that artificially causes photosynthetic electron transport similar to photosynthesis and, using the self-organization characteristics of that molecule, constructing a structure in which a photoelectric converting system is formed on a gold electrode so as to obtain superior photoelectric conversion.
Further, in JP 2005-259674 A is disclosed a photoelectric converting device structure wherein an artificial electron transport pathway of photosynthesis is established in a metal nanostructure in which a photochemical protein complex and metal nanoparticle are deposited on a metal electrode so as to obtain superior photoelectric conversion.
Nevertheless, the photoelectric conversion rate of the light energy of the energy transferable device and light energy—electrical energy converting system described in JP 2001-303022 A and JP 2002-25635 A is problematically insufficient.
Further, the metal nanostructure described in JP 2005-259674 A simply comprises microparticles deposited on a substrate, resulting in a poor bond with the substrate, causing the metal particles to readily peel from the substrate and, in turn, difficulties in stably maintaining the photochemical protein complex.
Furthermore, with the photoelectric converting device structure of JP 2005-259674 A, it is difficult to uniformly form the metal nanostructure on the substrate surface, resulting in problems such as difficulties in uniformly fixing the photochemical complex to a wide surface area, and difficulties in producing a uniform function across the entire surface area.